45.
October 1st, 2020
Ialmost slammed the landline receiver on its base, and scrubbed both of my hands over my face as I took a calming breath.
Three meetings with potential partners for three very different collaboration chances.
Three presentations from those very partners for a chance for each of them to prove how and why their products and ideas would match that of my brand.
And lastly, three demo trials that would help me decideifI wanna shake hands with these TBD partners and spice upUnder the Woodsa little.
No pressure or anything, right?
…Right.
The idea of wanting to give my fans something new from my clothing line was a thought I’d had in my mind for months. Shane was totally on board with it, and so were Zaira and the others. Once my assistant had spread word of me wanting to temporarily partner up with other clothing lines, the calls, emails, and letters we’d been receiving had been endless. With the help of my employees, Shane, and my friends, I’d been able to narrow down my choices to two, and because I’d already made a promise to Mr. Henley, owner of a brand that sold…uh,scentedunderwear, I had to keep him on my very short list of potential partners.
Ross had been feeling a little under the weather for the past few days, which is why shoot had been called off. He’d thankfully tested negative for COVID-19, and according to Dylan, it was Ross’s heart that was causing him issues. He apparently had some blockage that needed to be fixed through either a bypass or an angioplasty, but the stubborn fucker refused to do anything untilWaves That Hold Uswas fully wrapped up.
That guy really put his work before his health.
My landline rang for what was probably the sixty-ninth time. I made no move to pick up the receiver, and only kept staring at the damn thing until it stopped ringing.
Thank fuck.
Mr. Henley was very passionate about his underwear idea. He’d been continually sending me physical samples of various designs his company was working on, and when I’d booked a meeting with him yesterday, his secretary had started blowing up my landline with updates of his whereabouts.
“Mr. Henley has left his cabin, Mr. Underwood.”
“Mr. Henley is in his car, Mr. Underwood.”
“Mr. Henley is twenty minutes and fifteen seconds away from your HQ, Mr. Underwood.”
“Mr. Henley just farted a buffet in his car and rendered most of us unconscious, Mr. Underwood.”
Okay so the last one’s a joke, but I swear the other three aren’t. I honestly can’t come to terms with the fact that people like Mr. Henley and his secretary even exist in our world. But then again, it’s 2020, so nothing should shock or surprise me anymore. There might as well be an alien invasion at this point. Or a leaked Bigfoot sex tape. Or a scientific research that shows why Vin Diesel still looks like he’s 25 while the rest of us continue to age like there’s no tomorrow.
A knock sounded on my office door, which made me jump to my feet.
I fixed the lapels of my navy-blue Armani suit, and put on a professional smile just as the door began opening. “Mr. Henley! It’s such an honor to have you he–” I shut my mouth and almost choked on my saliva when Zaira, dressed in a white pencil skirt and a pink blouse, stepped into my office and looked at me like I’d lost my marbles.
Allof them.
Her hair was open and pin-straight. Her pink, glossy lips formed an ‘O’ as she kept staring at me. The nude pumps she was wearing, along with her glasses, only added to her sexy-as-all-fuck look. And her legs…
God, her legs were made to be wrapped around my waist. Her golden skin was flat-out begging to be tasted, and so were her bow-shaped lips.
“Is this a sexual fetish of yours that I’m just now discovering? Do you like calling your partners ‘Mr. Henley’?” She asked with a tilt of her head.
I gave her another once-over before smirking at her. “Lock the door, Zaira.”
She sucked in a breath, but immediately did what I’d asked her to.
With a grin, I sat back down in my chair and watched – with a dick that was most definitely going to pop out of my pants at any given moment because it was so damn hard – as Zaira made her way over to my table.
She placed a large paper bag on it. It’s the first I’d seen it, because I was too busy devouring her with my eyes to have noticed anything else.
I jerked my head towards the bag. “What’s this?” I asked her.
